


The Final Race

by Canadian_Parade



Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Action, Book 2: The Dream Thieves, Cabeswater - Freeform, Car Chase, Deleted Scenes, Dream theives, Kavinsky doesn't know how to deal with his feelings, M/M, No Raven King Spoilers, No Spoilers, Noah's off having a heart attack in the afterlife, Pre-The Raven King, based off a deleted scene
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-11-12
Packaged: 2018-08-22 19:27:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8297524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Canadian_Parade/pseuds/Canadian_Parade
Summary: Two cars, to the cliff and back. It's the final race between Ronan and Kavinsky. With the stakes high and the adrenaline higher, everything ends now.  *This is based off of a deleted scene from The Dream Thieves.





	1. Part One

**5:00**

  
“Kavinsky.” Ronan growled.

  
“Lynch.” Kavinsky smiled, his lips like glass shards and eyes just as sharp.

  
Adam had a very bad feeling about this. He couldn’t tell if it was Cabeswater tugging at his thoughts or just past experience. He fiddled a loose thread on his jacket. He wondered if it was too late to talk Ronan out of it. Nothing he said before had worked, but Adam felt his silence now made him culpable. He was suddenly glad that Blue was working that night.

  
Beside him, Gansey had slipped on the mask of a responsible man. He watched the exchange with well hidden worry behind a layer of mild disdain and impatience. He had spent over an hour trying to talk Ronan down from the challenge, but it was to no avail. Adam watched him lean on the hood of the replica Camaro. Bright and shiny, other than the missing engine it was a perfect match. He knew Gansey was more impressed than he was willing to let on after he heard what Ronan planned to do with it.

  
“I see you brought Daddy Dick.” Kavinsky said, tipping his sunglasses in Gansey’s direction, His gold chains glittered in the fading sunlight.

  
“It’s his car.” Ronan said simply.

  
“But it isn’t. Not really. I could help you, show you how to make it better. How to make it real.”

  
“I’m with them.”

  
“I told you before Lynch, you're either with me or against me.” Kavinsky said.

  
Ronan crossed his arms. Adam felt a twitch of satisfaction. Kavinsky made a low whistling, arcing his hand down until it hit the car. “Pow!” He mimicked an explosion. Ronan didn’t react.

  
“Buzzkill. Anyway, you know the deal. To the cliff's edge and back. If I win, you have to let me into yours dreams, one pill at a time.” The way Kavinsky smirked sent a shudder down Adam's spine. “And you come hang out with me. If you win, I’ll leave you alone.”

  
“No, you don’t talk to me, you don’t look at me, you don’t come within ten feet of me. You don’t even think about my brothers, and if you take one step towards them—” Ronan jerked his thumb at Gansey and Adam. “I’ll pummel you. Deal?”

  
“Done.”

 **3:00**  
Kavinsky held his hand out and Ronan took it. They shook on it. Ronan pulled his hand away and Kavinsky let his fingers linger on his skin. Adams stomach turned and he glanced away.

  
Those were high stakes. He knew that Ronan would keep his word no matter what. A promise was a type of truth, solidified by someone like Ronan. He would not lie, not even to Kavinsky. It drove Adam nuts sometimes, that of all the moral things Ronan chose to hold himself to, it was honesty. The truth was not malleable to him, it was black and white steel.

  
Either it was, or it wasn’t. Ronan said he would, and so he would.

  
“Let’s do this.”

  
Kavinsky threw open his door and slipped inside. With a resigned glance at Adam, Gansey climbed into the passenger seat of the fake camaro. Adam looked at the white car beside them. Kavinsky's gaunt face was shrouded by the semi tinted windows, but Adam felt as though he knew where his gaze lay.

  
The anxiety he tried to bury forced its way up his throat, nearly choking him. His mind whirled with possibilities, scenarios that ended in Ronan losing or getting hurt; scenes of Kavinsky's tainted, mirthful laughter. Ronan ducked to get into the camaro, but Adam grabbed his arm.

 **2:00**  
“I think I should ride with Kavinsky.” He said softly.

  
Ronan flinched. “Why the hell would you do that?” He snapped.

  
“Do you really trust him alone in there? He’ll find a way to cheat the moment you hit the gas.”

  
“And you think you’re gonna stop him?”

  
Adam shrugged. “It’s worth a try.”

  
Ronan groaned and looked like he was going to argue more, but Kavinsky shot down his window and raised an eyebrow.

  
“Are you chickening out already?” He sneered. ‘We shook on it Lynch, it’s too late to back out now.”

  
Ronan started to say something, but Adam jumped in.

  
“I want to ride with you.” He said.

  
Adam could hear Ronan cursing behind him, but didn’t turn. Kavinsky eyed him, not warily so much as curiously. Unasked questions seemed to bubble at the edge of his lips. Then he flipped his shades down and waved his hand dismissively.  
“Why not? Let’s go Parrish.”

 **1:00**  
Ronan let out another curse. Kavinsky tutted and leaned back into the car. As Adam went around to the other side of the car, he caught a glimpse of Gansey peering through the window. His face was puzzled and on the cusp of disapproval, like he knew he wouldn't agree with whatever Adam was doing, but wasn’t sure exactly what that would be. Adam turned away and leaned into the car.

  
The interior was sleek and black all the way through. Buttons dotted the console and a pair of die hung from the mirror, all the divots scratched out. He slipped into the passenger seat, ignoring every one of his senses that screamed for him to get out. He knew it was a bad idea, but it was also the best one he had.  
Story of Adam's life.

  
He kept his gaze on the dirt path in front of them. He didn’t want to look at Kavinsky's face, cruelty and contempt etched into his every feature. He didn’t want to look past him either, and see Ronan explaining in a tense voice what Adam had did, didn’t want to see Ganseys eyes flash with outrage and distress. Gansey would understand why he did it, but he would still disapprove.

 

“K.”

  
Kavinsky turned and Adam saw Ronan leaning out of the open camaro window.

  
“Don’t break him.”

  
It was a warning and as much as a plea as he’d ever heard Ronan issue.

  
Kavinsky didn’t answer. He pointed to the digital clock that sat, stacked up on wooden boxes until it was a few feet off the ground. It flashed menacing red numbers against the back screen.

 **0:10**  
Adam wondered if it had been taken from his dreams, or if Kavinsky just had an old digital clock laying around. It was probably the first.

 **0:05**  
“You’re about to get the ride of a lifetime Parrish.”

  
Kavinsky flashed him a smile, all bared teeth. Adams nearly winced. Kavinsky revved the engine and Adam marveled at how much louder it was inside the car. He snuck a glance at Ronan, taking in his tense posture, white knuckles, cruel smile, and felt a little better. Ronan couldn’t lose. He promised.

 **0:01**  
Kavinsky locked the doors. Adam sucked in a breath.

 **0:00**  
The wheels burned.


	2. Chapter Two

Ronan hated how good it felt. The leather clutched tightly under his aching fingers, the adrenaline drowning out reason and pumping life through his veins. Every scream of the wind against his skin made him want to burst out laughing. His lips twitched into a snarling smile. Blood and burnt rubber. This was what dreams were made of.

  
“Jesus Ronan!” Gansey cried.

  
As soon as clock hit zero, Gansey’s hands flew up. One frantically grasped the handle above his head, the other gripped his chair so tightly that Ronan was afraid he would leave marks with his nails. Gansey, wild eyes and panicked, was quite a sight to behold Ronan found. He fought the urge to laugh.

  
Beside him, Kavinsky's car sped across the road. He could see Adam, pressed against his seat, white as bone. A tiny bit of the exhilaration faded. He tried to keep his eyes on road as he urged his car faster, but his gaze kept slipping back to Adam.

  
As he hastily jerked the steering wheel left, he saw Adam fiddling with his door. Kavinsky shouted something, the edges of his mouth twisted up. Adam glared and continued banging around with the door. His face was calm, but Ronan thought he saw a flicker of something in his eyes.

  
“Remind me why we let Adam ride with Kavinsky.” Gansey shouted over the wind, having gotten over his initial conniption.

  
Ronan didn’t want to talk. He didn’t want to think about Adam and K, how close they were in the car and how dangerous that could be. He wanted to drive, to race, to win. He wanted to let himself disappear in the howling of the wind.

  
“Ronan, I know you can hear me.” Gansey insisted.

  
Ronan snarled. “There was no letting him, he just did it.”

  
That was the way it was with Adam Parrish. You couldn’t stop him, just hope to God that he’s right.

  
Gansey didn’t seem satisfied, but at that moment Ronan twisted hard to the right, avoiding a pothole and his friends head slammed against the door. Gansey cursed. Ronan let loose a humorless chuckle filled with nerves. The road screamed beneath him. His bones shook. Gansey rubbed his head and shot Ronan a dark look. Ronan ignored him.  
Out the window, he could see Kavinsky pulling ahead. The white blur beside him streaked forward, kicking dust up in a massive cloud behind it. Ronan curled his fingers tensely around the wheel. Urging his car forward, he growled. Kavinsky couldn’t be allowed to win. He wouldn’t let him. The gas pedal was flat on the floor, although Ronan still dug his toes into it. Gansey was quietly muttering what was either a creative combination of curses or a frantic prayer. Possibly both.

  
The Camaro look-alike gained ground against the mitsubishi. Ronan dared a glance across the road. His stomach dropped and he instantly wished that he hadn’t. Adam was smashing his fists against the window, his face filled with terror. His mouth frantically twisted into words Ronan couldn’t make out, but understood perfectly the idea of. Kavinsky had locked the doors.

  
Whatever he was doing—or was going to do—frightened Adam enough to make him panic. That was a warning in itself. Ronan had to end it. He had to get Adam out of there.

  
“Something isn’t right.” Gansey cried above the wind. “This is too easy.”

  
The Camaro flew faster along the dirt, inching its way into the lead. Ronan bit down on his cheek. Gansey hadn’t seen Adam yet. He couldn’t have. Ronan saw the cliffs edge ahead. In his mind's eye he could see the terrifying drop, sharp edges all the way down that collided with waves smashing against rock. It was a one way ticket to the afterlife.  
Ronan knew Adam didn’t want him to race Kavinsky. He scoffed at the very idea of it when K dropped him the note at Nino’s. When he started to consider it, Adam was in equal parts furious and confused. While Gansey tried to reason with Ronan, Adam had resorted to blazing silences, and then fitful rants.

  
“It’s a risk worth taking.” Ronan had said, trying his hand at logic.

  
“It’s a stupid risk!” Adam shot back. “Do you actually expect him to keep his word?”

  
“It’s my choice. If there’s any chance that he’ll go through with it, then I have to do it.”

  
“That’s ridiculous. Are you going to keep your word if you lose? Even with what he’s asking for?”

  
“I don’t lie Parrish.” Ronan said coldly.

  
Adam's mouth was set in a grim line, but his eyes were hurt. Ronan wasn’t sure why exactly, but he felt guilty all the same when Adam stormed out of the room.  He regretted his tone as the wind bellowed in his ears and flushed the memories away. Ganseys anxious mummering grew louder. The cliff was closer now. Its jagged teeth stuck up in a vicious smile that chilled Ronan. It didn’t matter though, because as his eyes flickered back to Adam, his blood began to boil.

  
The cliff’s edge was getting too close for comfort, but Kavinsky wasn’t slowing down and neither was he. He started to turn, hesitation pulling at his thoughts every moment that the Mitsubishi stayed straight on the road. Gansey craned his head to look past Ronan.

  
“What’s he doing? Why isn’t he turning— Oh God, Ronan look. Something’s wrong with Adam.”

  
He spared another glance at Adam. He was yelling and trying to wrench the steering wheel away from Kavinsky. Jesus. Ronan’s stomach dropped like a sack of rocks. Kavinsky threw his head back in what looked like a manic laugh and slogged Adam across the face. He fell back, smacking his head on the windshield, and went still. If it weren’t for Adam’s flickering eyelids, Ronan would have rammed into the car. Blood crashed through his veins like a hurricane.

  
“We have to stop him!” Gansey cried as they shot to towards the top of the hill.  
“How?” Ronan roared back.

  
Gansey rambled on, but no solutions came up. For all his words, he had nothing to say.  
They had seconds left. Kavinsky would turn, he had to. With a roar of anger, he spun the wheel. Rubber burned and Gansey went white as sheet. Ronan held firm and with terror prickling on his skin, he dragged them away from the cliff. He turned and saw Adam terrorized face pressed against the back window.

  
Ronan slammed on the brakes. He grunted as the seatbelt slammed into him, and Gansey nearly folded in half. He thought we could smell the burnt rubber. Ronan threw open his door and scrambled out. Gansey wasn’t far behind. Ronan watched the Mitsubishi speed up more, if that was possible and the air was ripped violently from his lungs. He could only watch, lava spewing from his lips, as Kavinsky raced on.

He blinked. The car disappeared over the cliff.


End file.
